STILL HIGHER TAXES

Wairarapa Times-Age, 13 April 1943, Page 4

STILL HIGHER TAXES

BRITAIN’S ENORAIOUS WAR OUTLAY BUDGET ESTIMATES REVENUE OF 2,900 MILLIONS SOUGHT. GREAT SACRIFICES INVOLVED. (British Official Wireless.) (Received This Day, 9.35 a.m.) RUGBY, April 12. Presenting the Budget in the House of Commons, the* Chancellor of the Exchequer, Sir Kingsley Wood, said the cost of the war had now reached the stupendous figure of 13,000 millions, and Britain’s total expenditure throughout the war period, including debt charges and normal civil appropriations, totalled 15,600 millions. Yet we had not only managed to meet the heavy expenditure on the war, but had been able to develop social services which would cost 219 millions in 1943, apart from sums spent under the stabilisation policy. Our war expenditure itself had been steadily increasing throughout the year, which was evidence of our growing strength and power. It had now reached fifteen millions daily. INCOME TAX RECORD. To meet this large expenditure we had raised in taxation in the past financial year the unprecedented figure of 2,483 millions, including a record collection of income tax. Of all our expenditure since the war began, 44 per cent had been met by current domestic revenue. Of the increased war time yield of indirect taxation, increases in liquor, tobacco and entertainments taxes accounted for 452 millions, oi' 83 per cent. There were now some seven million wage-earners who paid about 200 millions in income tax. Today nearly every family in the country contained at least one income tax payer. Income tax, therefore, was a matter of concern in millions of homes, previously subject only to indirect taxation. A special effort was being made to simplify tax forms and give facilities for learning about methods of assessment. Even the great weight of taxation imposed had left a very formidable borrowing problem. From the beginning of the war to the end of 1942 we had borrowed 8,667 millions. Subscriptions to small savings, after allowing for repayments-, amounted to 21 per cent of the total borrowing. The Chancellor said that a year ago he estimated that the total Budget expenditure in the financial year 1942-43 would be 5,286 millions, including 4,500 • million for votes of credit. Revenue was expected to produce 2,400 millions. ' In the event, we had to borrow rather more than the anticipated total. \The ” vote of credit was 4,840 millions, 340 1 millions more than the estimate. On the revenue side, there was an excess of 47 millions on the Inland Revenue ' estimate. Income tax yielded 94 millions above the estimate. Customs and excise yielded 80 millions over the estimate, mainly from tobacco, beer and the purchase tax. The consumption of - tobacco and beer was still at a very • high level. The total revenue, ex,l eluding the Canadian contribution, : was 2,595 millions, 193 millions above the;, estimate, against a total expendiI ture of 5,637 millions, which was 351 j millions above the estimate. Dealing with estimated revenue and expenditure in the financial year 1943-44, the Chancellor put votes of - credit at 4,900 millions. Expenditure . requiring domestic finance was esti--■ma-ted at 5,156 millions. A: He proposed to ask for new taxa- : ?tion which would raise the domestic revenue to 2,900 millions, leaving about 1 2,250 millions to be covered by domestic borrowing, sixty millions more than in the past year. Personal - savings were expected to increase to -1,300 millions, compared with 1,170 millions in the calendar year, 1942. The estimated domestic revenue of -2,900 millions included an estimated income tax yield of 1,175 millions and an excess profits tax of 500 millions. The total inland revenue was estimated at 1,872 millions. Budget concessions would include an extension of the scope of the housekeeper allowance, dependant relative .allowance and invalid child allowance. LIQUOR & TOBACCO. Dealing with proposed taxation increases, Sir K. Wood said Post Office charges, including trunk telephone calls and inland telegrams, would be increased to discourage the use of these services and release manpower. The beer duty would be raised a penny a .. pint and the duty on spirits £1 per • proof gallon, equivalent to 2s 4d per / bottle of whiskey or other spirits. The duty on wines would be raised 3s a gallon on light wines, including British . wines, and 6s on heavy wines. The to- - tai yield of the increased beer duty ?■ was estimated at 33 millions in a full t year. The tobacco duty would be in- .. creased by a further 6s a pound of unmanufactured leaf, and a corresponding increase on imported cigarettes. ;• This would mean a further or 5d an ounce on pipe tobacco and an ex- ' tra lid or 2d on ten cigarettes, now sold for 9d or Is. Concessions to service men’s canteens would continue. . The increase in the entertainments tax on seats costing, above Is was estimated to yield nine millions in a full year. The purchase tax on luxuries would be increased from 66 2-3 per cent to 100 , per cent, yielding six millions in a full year. Concluding Sir K. Wood said that of .. 5,156 millions to be raised by domestic finance, two-thirds would be provided J from current revenue. This involved great sacrifices, but it should be our ; determination to see that nothing was ’ left undone which would help to achieve early victory. TRADE & LEND=LEASE HEAVY DECLINE IN BRITISH EXPORTS. , BUT MUCH HELP GIVEN ' ' TO ALLIES. (British Official Wireless.) (Received This Day, 9.35 a.m.) < RUGBY, April 12. “In his Budget speech, Sir Kingsley Wood said the volume of goods available for export had fallen to a quarter of the pre-war level. Of the total of ! goods and services supplied by the United States to Britain, Russia, China and other United Nations, 80 per cent lend-lease, but lend-lease was not one-sided so far as Britain was con-

cerned. We had in effect paid for a considerable portion of the goods reaching Britain from North America since the beginning of the war, while the supplies Britain contributed to the common task had greatly increased in the past year. The value of the munitions we had already given to Russia was about 170 millions. We were spending about 150 millions in constructing facilities expressly for American use in Britain. Last year we made available 700,000 deadweight v tons of shipping for American military operations. Large though help from the United States was, it was not greater than we ourselves were giving our Allies.